Place pork in a shallow pan and let come to room temperature (about 1 hour). Cut deep slits 1" apart across the top and bottom of the pork with a sharp knife.

Rub the salt over the entire pork. Wrap in banana leaves, one leaf at a time..in 3 layers. Tie with kitchen twine.

Wrap in foil in 2 layers.

Line the bottom of a heavy oven safe pot with a piece of banana leaf. Place 2 1/2 cups of water in the bottom and then lay the foil package on top. Cover with lid and place in preheated 350 oven. After 2 hours check and see if the water has evaporated..if so, add a bit more. Do not immerse the package in water...it should be working more like a steam than a boil. This will take about 5 hours. Ours was finished after about 4 1/2 hours. Remove the foil package from the pan and place in a shallow pan. In the foil packet will be melted pork fat and juice. Shred the pork and serve. I suggest adding back in some of the pork juices/fat that will have accumulated in the packet....it will taste much more authentic. However the meat is just as juicy without it..but will be lacking a bit of the buttery flavor.

Serve with rice, fruit, macaroni salad, poi...and you have yourself a citified luau.

generous pinch sugar (this gives it a bit of color when frying)--purely optional

peanut or other oil for frying

marinara sauce

lemon wedges

place clamari in a bowl of lightly salted ice water. let sit for about 10 minutes. pour oil about 3" deep in a heavy pot and heat over medium fire. remove squid from water and dry thoroughly with paper towels. in a shallow dish, mix together flour and spice of choice. drop in flour and lightly dust. shake off excess flour and drop in hot oil heated to 350.

The key is to not overcook the calamari. If you do, it will get chewy...so watch is carefully and take it out when it is lightly toasted and crispy...do not let it get dark brown. Drain on paper towel and dust with salt. Serve with lemon wedges and sauce.

place the milk, sugar and salt in a saucepan over low heat. Cook to a simmer. Meanwhile, place egg yolks in a bowl and whisk until they lighten in color a bit. When the milk is at a simmer, slowly pour it into the yolks to temper. Return all to the saucepan and slowly cook until it begins to thicken. Remove from heat and let cool for about 15 minutes. Stir in the cream and vanilla and refrigerate until cold. Freeze in your ice cream freezer. Once the ice cream is frozen, hand stir in the ganache. Make sure the ganache is cool, otherwise it will just make chocolate ice cream....which is also good.

*i use vanilla sugar which i make by grinding used vanilla beans with granulated sugar. It is not necessary for this recipe. If you use plain sugar, you might want to bump your vanilla up a bit (maybe an additional tsp)..if you like your ice cream really vanilla-y

"People who have no love to share eat poorly, and they don't cook. If you love cooking, you will cook, at whatever level. People who like to be around a table, who like to share--they'll try to cook, even if it's only an egg. I would much prefer to eat an egg with friends than caviar with strangers. That's important."

Sift sugar, salt and flour together. Place water and butter into a saucepan Heat and bring to a simmer, you want the butter to incorporate into the water, not just float on top. Remove from heat and add flour mixture all at once. Stir vigorously with a wooden spoon, until it is all mixed together. Place back on heat and continue to stir until the mixture begins to come from the sides of the pan. You do not want to dry out too much, but you want to reduce the amount of moisture a bit. Stir over heat about a minute or two. Place mixture into the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with paddle attachment. Turn mixer to medium speed to assist bringing the temperature down a bit, but not fully cooled. Add eggs one at a time, mixing thoroughly after each addition. After adding the last egg check for consistency. You want the mixture to be a bit firm, and sort of webby. When I say webby I mean it has a consistency where is stretches between the parts sticking to the sides of the bowl and what is on the paddle. 3 eggs should be enough.

Place in pastry bag and pipe in 4" rods onto a lined pastry sheet. You can use this same batter for cream puffs, or deep fry for delicious donuts. The batter can be refrigerated for a max of three days before using.

Bake in a preheated 425 oven for 15 minutes, then reduce the heat to 375 until the eclairs are browned and crispy. The interior needs to be dry. Let cool and fill with pastry cream and dip in ganache.

for pastry cream: Whisk the egg yolks and the cornstarch in a bowl. set aside. In a saucepan, simmer milk, sugar and salt. Once it is simmering, temper the eggs with the hot milk. Return to the saucepan and whisk continuously until the custard begins to thicken. Once you see large bubbles coming up through the middle of the pot, remove from heat. Pour into a clean bowl (use a sieve if you feel you have overcooked), and stir in butter and vanilla. Place clingfilm over top and refrigerate until ready to use.

Heat cream with sugar and corn syrup over medium heat. Once cream begins to simmer and sugar is dissolved, pour over chocolate and butter. Let chocolate melt and then whisk together until it is thick and shiny.

Tuesday, February 16, 2010

Today we have a guest host for TNSC. Rose and I met at culinary school. Given the chance she will tell you I was over prepared (she says I had way too many tools!) and I was focused (her side of the story is that I ignored her and had no idea she had been standing next to me all day). She may be partially right..but in my defense....never mind..it's not about me....Rose and I became fast friends and found a common bond at the stove. Although more than a decade my junior, I am continually inspired by her and her many talents. She is a good friend and a great cook...

here she is:

Hi. My name is Rose and I am a busy mom of 2 boys; 3 if you count my husband.
Christy and I met in culinary school. All though we have very different lives, one thing we have in common is our love for food, craftiness, and laughter.
I volunteered to guest host the "t-n-s-c", and I hope you all enjoy this recipe and be creative with it in your own kitchen. This is something I make about once every two weeks. It's super easy, kid friendly, and the possibilities are endless on what to throw in.

Fritatta with Ham and Caramelized Onions

Here is what I used

1 medium brown onion

olive oil

2 tsp sugar

7 eggs

3/4 c grated cheese- I used smoked fontina

3 Tb 1/2 & 1/2 (milk, or cream works too)

1/2 c red & yellow bell peppers, diced

1/2 c steamed broccoli florets

ham steak- cubed

fresh parsley

2 cloves minced garlic

salt and pepper to taste

To make it easiest- you need a non-stick pan that is oven safe with a lid. I used a 10" sauté pan with straight sides.

Heat about 1 Tb of olive oil over medium-high heat. Slice up the onion, and toss in the pan- coating well with olive oil. After about a minute, sprinkle sugar over the onions, stir well, and turn heat to low. Let cook for 28 minutes, or until they are nice and caramelized. Remove from pan (don't wash it yet!), and set aside. (I usually can't help but eat 1/2 the bowl-it's like candy)

Preheat oven to 400. In medium bowl, scramble together the eggs and 1/2 & 1/2 until light and fluffy. Season with salt and pepper. Stir in minced parsley and most of the cheese, reserving some for the top. In the same pan used for the onions, heat a little bit of olive oil over medium-high heat, and throw in the ham, veggies and garlic. Let sauté for 4 minutes. Sprinkle in caramelized onions, then pour in egg mixture. Gently stir around until it starts to resemble very, very runny scrambled eggs. Shake the pan to level out the eggs, put on lid, and place in the oven. After 11 minutes, remove lid and sprinkle rest of cheese on top, and cook until cheese is fully melted. Remove from oven, and let sit for 5 minutes before slicing. Or you can turn it out onto a pretty platter if you serve this to company.

What do you think G?

The great thing about fritattas is the versatility- it's great for breakfast, lunch or dinner. Go mexican with chorizo, scallions, green chiles, cheddar, and cilantro with avocado and salsa verde on top. Or veggies galore- bell peppers, broccoli, spinach, mushrooms, asparagus, onions, parsley and a smoky gouda. Or Italian with Pancetta, asiago, spinach and Italian parsley with some fresh grape tomatoes on top. I hope that some of you play around with the ingredients. And please let us know if you do!

1 1/2 cups hot coffee or hot water or mixture of the two (i use espresso with water)

3 cups granulated sugar

1 1/2 cups cocoa powder2 1/2 cups flour

2 tsp baking soda

1 tsp baking powder

1 1/4 tsp kosher salt

3 extra large eggs

3/4 cup vegetable oil

1 cup sour cream + 1/2 cup milk or 1 1/2 cups buttermilk

1 tsp vanilla

melt bittersweet chocolate in hot water/coffee. Sift dry ingredients together (including sugar). Mix together the chocolate/coffee mixture, milk, sour cream and vanilla. In a mixer beat the eggs with the oil until thickened and doubled in volume (about 3-5 minutes). Alternately add the dry and wet ingredients to the mixer, beginning and ending with the dry ingredients. Mix until just incorporated.

Bake in 2-9" rounds that have been prepared with cooking spray and lined with baking paper.

*note...for ding dongs, i make in a sheet pan and use a cookie cutter to cut the rounds.Oven temp should be 350 and bake until tester comes out clean. For the sheet pan, it will go fast...about 20 minutes. For the cake rounds allow about 50 minutes, but check on it after 30 minutes.

i recommend this for filling...but not for frosting. It is lightly sweet and very sturdy

1 cup milk

5 Tbs flour

11/4 cup powdered sugar

1/2 cup shortening--room temperature

1/2 cup unsalted butter--room temperature

1/2 tsp vanilla

pinch salt

Over low heat, cook milk and flour in a saucepan until it makes a thick paste. Use a whisk to break up lumps. Let cool. In mixer using whisk attachment, beat shortening, butter, sugar, salt and vanilla. Add in cooled flour paste and whip until light and fluffy. Add more sugar if you want a sweeter taste.

Heat cream with sugar and corn syrup over medium heat. Once cream begins to simmer and sugar is dissolved, pour over chocolate and butter. Let chocolate melt and then whisk together until it is thick and shiny..

To assemble: cut rounds of the chocolate cake. Spread a layer of filling on top of one round and top with a second round. Fill in nooks and large gaps with a bit more filling. Place in fridge to harden. Meanwhile make ganache. Set cakes on a cooling rack over a lined sheet pan. Pour ganache over cooled cakes and gently tap the rack to move the ganache over the cake. Use a small spatula warmed over a flame to nudge and smooth out the ganache.

Let cool at room temp or in the fridge if you are in a rush. You may loose some of the gloss if you refrigerate. Serve as is, or wrap in foil for authenticity!